"Are you also a new student? Do you know a male student named Tan Heqian?" The one speaking now was the foreign girl. She spoke in Chinese, albeit with an accent that twisted her words a little. However, this did not stop He Zhilan from hearing that familiar name.
He Zhilan was genuinely taken aback, "You’re looking for Tan Heqian?"
"Yes!" Seeing He Zhilan’s reaction, the boy knew that she must know him. "It seems like you know my brother, Tan Heqian? I’m his older brother, Tan Heshu. I just returned from abroad and was going to make a stopover in the capital. I came here to visit him without notifying him beforehand, so I don’t know his dorm’s exact location."
"What a coincidence!" He Zhilan quietly laughed, "Tan Heqian is my desk mate! I do know where his dorm is. Since there’s still plenty of time before class, I can take you there!"
He Zhilan truly didn’t expect such a coincidence in this world that she would encounter Tan Heqian’s brother.
This early morning surprise was like an exciting and happy event. Tan Heshu and his girlfriend, Mina, were relieved. Their visit to the school was spontaneous, so they came to Capital University, hoping to find Tan Heqian by chance. Once they found him, they planned to formally introduce Mina to him. If they couldn’t locate him, they would just show Mina around Capital University. They could not have imagined they would run into Tan Heqian’s desk mate right after they got off the car!
"This really is a coincidence. Who would have thought we’d run into Tan Heqian’s desk mate! Girl, what’s your name?" Mina, clearly more excited than Tan Heshu, let go of him, went around the group to stand next to He Zhilan, introduced herself enthusiastically, and then waited for He Zhilan’s answer.
"I’m He Zhilan." He Zhilan said, smiling, curiosity compelling her to glance at Tan Heshu. Perhaps it was because he wore glasses, or maybe it was because the two brothers didn’t look much alike. Either way, she didn’t think of Tan Heshu as Tan Heqian’s brother when she first saw him.
Upon hearing He Zhilan’s name, Tan Heshu raised an eyebrow, "Is it the Zhilan from the phrase ’slender reed by a spilt stream, beautiful orchid in the orchard’?"
"Kind of." He Zhilan nodded, "It’s the same characters, but the meaning isn’t the same."
"Zhilan? Zhilan? The name sounds so familiar." Mina kept repeating He Zhilan’s name in her own accent. Then she suddenly looked at Tan Heshu and said, "The little girl in the photo you gave me is also called Zhilan, right? Let me see. The photo should be in my book, which is in my bag!"
After she finished speaking, Mina stopped, reached for the backpack on Tan Heshu’s shoulder, took out a book, flipped through it quickly, and soon took out an old black-and-white photo that was tucked inside.
After finding the photo, Mina gave the bag back to Tan Heshu, motioned for He Zhilan to come over, and pointed to the only little girl in the photo. "Heshu told me that this little girl is also called Zhilan, but her surname differs from yours. I forgot what her surname is."
"Her name is Gu Zhilan. She is the child of a relative of a former classmate of mine. Our parents were busy back then, so one family would take care of her one day, and another the next. The photo was taken not long before my family moved away, and afterwards, I lost contact with my classmate." Tan Heshu explained with a shallow smile, "My girlfriend probably thinks it’s a coincidence. Her name and yours only have one character difference."